Power MOSFETs frequently require a high gate current pulse for their operation. For example, circuits containing control or synchronous power MOSFETs frequently require a high gate pulse current for their operation. As a specific example, high frequency dc to dc converters such as synchronous buck converters are operated in the region of 3 MHz and above, at breakdown voltages of about 30 volts and below. The gate driver current ig for the control and synchronous MOSFETs of those circuits is determined, approximately by:ig=Qg/tON 
For a typical SO-8 packaged device such as the IRF7811W made by the International Rectifier Corporation, the gate charge Qg required to turn on the MOSFET is in the region of 14nC. If the MOSFET turn on time tON is limited to 10 ns, the switching current can therefore be of the order 1.4A. This poses a problem for control ICs where capability to deliver this current level is not economically viable, given manufacturing complexity versus chip area required.
Solving this problem has typically been addressed by the addition of separate driver ICs placed in circuit between the control IC and the MOSFETs. As switching frequencies increase, the layout related circuit efficiency of this approach reduces, and the parasitic inductances caused by the distance between the separate components cause higher losses during switching.